Jayden Struble defends Arber Xhekaj and does not share the same opinion as Martin St-Louis at all
In a press conference after last night's game, defenseman Jayden Struble defended his teammate Arber Xhekaj.
Let's recall that on Saturday night, head coach Martin St-Louis had slightly thrown Xhekaj under the bus by criticizing his decision to go after Toronto Maple Leafs forward Cédric Paré.
St-Louis did not seem to be in a good mood toward Xhekaj.
Last night, Xhekaj vented his frustration, this time targeting Ottawa Senators forward Tim Stützle in response to a dangerous hit by another Sens player against Kirby Dach.
Jayden Struble Defends Arber Xhekaj
Following this sequence, here's what Struble had to say.
«It's about answering the bell, he (Ridley Grieg) definitely didn't wanna do that. I have all the respect for Arber in the world. I'm not saying you should go out & make dirty plays but he's sticking up for his teammates, something that (Ridley) Grieg didn't wanna do, he didn't wanna take it into his own hands.»
- Jayden Struble tonight .
Wow! That's transparency, and that's the kind of speech that his teammates will absolutely love.
Struble also added that 5 or 6 Canadiens players challenged Ridly Greig to drop the gloves (including Struble himself), but the Sens forward constantly evaded them each time.
On Martin St-Louis' side, he did not share the same opinion and interpretation of the scene at all.
In Marty's opinion, Xhekaj's hit on Stützle was just a hockey play, and the only reason it's being talked about is that it was made by a massive defenseman.
Yes,' he replied.»
- Taken from Jonathan Bernier's article, Journal de Montréal
We highly recommend reading his full article.
In short, it's interesting to see that Martin St-Louis has slightly changed his tune and, unlike last Saturday, does not seem to hold a grudge against Arber Xhekaj for the decision he made (which led to his ejection from the game).
And what do you think-did it deserve a suspension? Personally, I don't think so.
In any case, despite all this, as we mentioned earlier this morning, some believe that Xhekaj may not have a spot in the Canadiens' regular lineup to start the season:
This will be a storyline to watch in the coming days.
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